Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Is BRAC indirectly helping the Bama and Tennessee GOP?

Phil Williams(R) defeated Jenny Askins(D) yesterday by a 61% to 39% landslide margin in a special election in the Huntsville area. This seat had been held by the democrats for over a decade. This win by the GOP now puts the margin in the Alabama State House at a 61-44 democrat majority. It also gives the GOP the most seats they've ever had in the Alabama State House. I havent looked into this much but I wonder if the BRAC realignment is helping the GOP in these special elections this year in the Tennessee Valley. The GOP also won a state senate seat last month in Huntsville that the democrats had held for ten years. There is another special election for a state house seat coming up in a few months on the Tennessee side of the state line which was also vacated by a democrat. This open State House seat used to be a very reliable democrat seat but last November the GOP nominee for the seat scored an unusually high 45% against a non controversial democrat. Fayetteville, Tn has made a concerted effort in recent years to recruit a lot of the BRAC families to move to their city because Tennessee doesnt have a state income tax and its close to Huntsville. Did their efforts pay off? Is that why we've seen a sudden spike in people voting for the GOP in this area? We shall see.....